Before the Beginning
by WhovianwithaBenediction
Summary: How did Sherlock end up being the person that he is today? Starting with university and finding love, leading up to the television series. Sherlock/OC
1. Chemistry Partners

**What was Sherlock like in University? What if he wasn't always so sociopathic? Is he capable of love? I look forward to seeing how this story will turn out. I have quite a few plot bunnies roaming around. ;) Please review! And if anybody out there wants to beta, well... *hint hint***

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The class buzzed excitedly as students filed in to take their seats. Sherlock tuned out the noise as he pushed through the crowd to his own desk. It was near the back of the room in a little corner by itself, which was fine by him. That way there were fewer distractions. Of course, there were other desks in that corner as well, but within the first few weeks of term, he had successfully scared off any student willing to sit next to him. Sherlock did not care though. The others were dull anyway. The class itself was too simple for his mind, the only reason he was there was to keep himself from boredom.

Eventually the professor walked in and addressed his audience. "Good morning, class. Today I will be assigning your chemistry partners for the rest of the year. Please move to a desk next to your partner when I read your names. First, Hayden Smith and Michael Donehey."

Sherlock ignored the names being called. He detested the idea of a partner. He did not need a partner. Surely the teacher realized that by now? He could only hope there was an odd number in the class and he would not be assigned to anybody. He was—

"Sherlock Holmes and Abigail Williams."

He glanced up as the teacher called his name. A girl on the other side of the room did the same. Their eyes met for a brief second. In that time, he could tell that she hoped he would join her so she would not have to leave the comfort of her friends. However, Sherlock had no intentions of moving. If this was going to work, she would have to accommodate him. He turned his attention back to his notes.

Someone coughed next to him. Sherlock looked up to see his new partner standing next to his desk, shuffling her feet uncomfortably.

In a glance, Sherlock observed who she was. He hadn't seen her before today, so a new student. Smart, but not brilliant, judging by her uneasy demeanor in the classroom. No romantic attachments, so not from the area at all. Somewhat attractive, but not enough to draw in a queue of boys. Lives in the dorm across from his. She was a writer, clearly not in his league when it came to science and math. Pet lover. And very, very intimidated by him.

"Umm, hello. You must be Sherlock?" she said with an uneasy grin.

Sherlock leaned back in his chair, hands folded in his lap. "Miss Williams."

She laughed hesitantly and shook her head. "No, no just Abigail, that's fine. I mean, um… do you mind if I sit here?" Abigail gestured to the seat beside him.

"No," Sherlock stated simply, his eyes never leaving her face.

"Oh, um," she blinked, at a loss. "Thank you." Abigail dropped her bag under the desk and hastily sat down, head hung over.

Sherlock could practically feel the embarrassment radiating from her as he watched. That girl was going to be his partner for the rest of the year? Dull. That was the only word that came to mind. Just dull.

The teacher gave instructions on the group project and Sherlock took notes, not that he needed to. He remembered everything perfectly. From time to time he would catch Abigail looking at him, at which they would both quickly turn away.

When the bell rang, Sherlock grabbed his bag and stood to leave. Surprisingly, he was stopped before he could get very far.

"Sherlock!"

He turned to see his new partner, what was her name… Abigail. She was running after him. He stopped so she could catch up, but continued walking the moment she was next to him.

"When do you want to meet for the project?" she asked. "I'm not doing anything this evening. We could meet after the last period in the library?"

Sherlock nodded once. "Fine."

Again, she seemed to be at a loss for words. "Um, okay then." Abigail was silent as she walked beside Sherlock for a while longer. "Well, I should go. I'll see you later."

Sherlock did not respond.

"Okay…" she muttered. "Bye, Sherlock." Without another word, she drifted off into the crowds, leaving Sherlock alone again.

But that was fine with him, Sherlock decided. Alone was what he had, was what he was always left with. Alone was what protected him.


	2. Not So Bad

**Sorry for the shortness of the chapters... they'll get longer! I promise!**

**As always, please review :)**

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The rest of the day was uneventful. Sherlock barely survived the boringness of his classes. He did not understand why reading the books of long dead men was important, or why learning to write an essay was necessary, or why the events of thousands of years ago were needed to survive a completely modernized age. In fact, the only subjects that were somewhat stimulating were science and math, and math was border-line. So when it was time to meet with Abigail, he was almost glad he had somewhat of a distraction after the day. He walked into the library, found a table, and waited.

About ten minutes later, his partner came scurrying into the library. "I am so sorry," she panted in a hushed whisper. "Mr.—"

"Mr. Carole kept the class over," Sherlock finished for her.

Abigail looked at him in surprise. She sank down into a chair. "How did you know?"

Sherlock leaned back. "I didn't. I deduced." When all he received was a blank stare, he elaborated. "You've got smudges on your hands, lead number 2 pencils, means you were writing quite a bit. You ran through a puddle on your way here, but there's no water on this side of the campus, so you came from the west side where the sprinkler system burst this morning. Finally, your bag. You were in a hurry to get here, so you neglected to close it completely, and you have bits of paper sticking out. So where is there a water breakage near a writing classroom on the west side of campus for our year? Mr. Carole's class."

Abigail continued to stare. "You figured that all out… in a matter of seconds?"

Sherlock nodded in confirmation.

"Wow…" she blinked once, then twice. "Just wow. That was… brilliant."

He looked generally surprised.

"What?" Abigail asked nervously. Had she said the wrong thing?

Now it was his turn to blink. "That's… not what people usually say."

Abigail cocked her head. "What do people usually say then?"

"Freak. Scram. Piss off. Sometimes they don't say anything and just let me have it." He said it all so casually and vaguely. Like he was used to it. Grown up with it even. Abigail immediately felt sorry for Sherlock.

"Well. I thought it was amazing. Are you this smart with sciences?" Abigail smiled at him, hoping it looked sincere.

"Yes." Sherlock stated.

_Very humble, isn't he_, Abigail mused. "So, how do you want to divide the work?"

Again, Sherlock seemed surprised. "Divide?"

Abigail peered across at him. "Yes, what should I do, and what should you do…"

"You're the first to say that," he confided. "Throughout school, I always did the work, and my 'partner' would tag his name on it."

"Didn't you ever turn them in?"

Sherlock shrugged and looked away.

Abigail was appalled. Sherlock was brilliant, yet he did not stand up for himself. Again, she wondered how often these episodes happened. "Well, I am definitely going to help where I can in this project. I'm not that great with science and math, but I'll try my hardest."

Sherlock returned his steady gaze to her. She puzzled him, that Abigail Williams. No one had ever talked to him like this before. Something about her was different. But he thought he liked it. "Alright then."

Maybe this partner was not so bad after all.


End file.
